The One's Left Behind
by CammieRR
Summary: After the disbanding of Fairy Tail Levy sticks by Gajeel's side but when he hears her crying it's his turn to go out of his way and tackle his biggest fear. Being a shoulder to cry on. One-Shot
It was one of the nights after work it happened, a sudden realization of feelings. One's that did not belong to him and one's that did.

When Fairy Tail disbanded Gajeel was angry, not in the way he _would_ have been before joining the guild, he didn't feel particularly violent and didn't have a thirst on the tip of his tongue that only vengeance could quench.

No, he _was_ angry but in a more hurt manner, a loved and lost kind of feeling.

He knew abandonment and it fucking _sucked ass_ and it was happening again. Everyone was leaving, everyone he cared about evaporated in front of his eyes like rain drops on grass blade.

Gone.

With that was an empty feeling inside of him he tried his best to ignore, to hide. Everyone left him and fucking hated it.

Not Levy though, Levy stayed by his side, he found it humorous actually. She was like his watch dog, by his side, making sure he was alright, that he ate, stayed clean, that he was happy, on time for work, on task, and damn did he appreciate. She was his little slice of family, but he worried about her.

They lived together, they worked together so it wasn't weird, or it didn't _feel_ weird, it actually felt completely normal.

When you live together though, you hear everything, especially when you're a Dragon Slayer with ears that could detect a pin drop from a mile away amongst a crowd of people. So when he constantly heard sniffles and light sobs from another room he felt unsettled.

It wasn't every night. If it was every night he figured he'd go mad and when he heard it he didn't know what the fuck to do. Worse of all he heard her shushing herself. A delicate voice persuading herself that her feelings should stay hidden, she made sure to listen to his whenever possible, but when she felt anything she shut herself right up.

"Shhhhhh, Levy common get it together," she would take a deep breath and release it in an uneven manner "someone's going to hear you, just be quiet, it's okay."

He would lie in bed in the dark and stare up into the black listening. Listening to the small girl comfort herself, it made him feel uneasy, his chest would tighten up and his throat would feel as though it was closing. Yeah he cried sometimes, he was a fucking human...er...partly, he hadn't cried in _awhile_ but if hearing Levy cry didn't depress the shit out of him he didn't know what could

It really pissed him off that she helped him with everything and anything, she always put him before herself and he couldn't even fucking go and comfort her. He didn't know how, he didn't know what to say, so he'd lay there, and drift into and uneasy sleep.

It was one night after work when he couldn't find her. He was walking around the Magic Council grounds, red eyes glowing in the moonlight, piercings glistening, matching the stars that danced in the sky.

He groaned, he felt exhausted and snapped the hair tie out of head, he didn't want to bother removing it calmly, and his wild hair flew around his face, finding its way into his mouth. He spit it out furiously and sighed. He allowed his eyes to wonder the rocky territory and he felt a slight tinge of panic welling inside him.

 _What if that shrimp walked home alone?_

He told her not to walk home alone. He told her and reminded her and fucking made sure she didn't ignore his warning... but she wasn't there.

She was _always_ there, waiting for him, smile on her face. They would walk home together, he'd bitch about the day and she'd over a few _annoying_ positive viewpoints.

He began searching his mind for answer, he knew he saw her leave the building in a rushed manner and didn't think anything of it but now as her absence weighed on him, he did. He imagined someone snatching her and began to grow frustrated, suddenly feeling as though he was hunting someone, and clenched his fists. He took a deep breath and began to try to find reason. Even if she did walk home there wasn't a high chance of a young adult mage being kidnapped.

 _She's fine_ he thought to himself, scratching his head feverishly _she walked home and she's fine._

Then he heard it, a sob followed by a low "shhhhhhh"

Levy

He quickly moved his head back and forth, focusing his eyes until he saw her, her small silhouette almost enveloped by the tiny bit of darkness the moonlight didn't touch.

She was sitting a few feet to the side of him, hands over her mouth, sitting with her back against the building. She noticed him, she had been staring at him this whole time, covering her mouth to remain silent, to try to go on undetected.

He saw her though, and she knew it.

"G-Gajeel…." She trailed off, and he figured she couldn't find words to say. Her face had a mixture of dried tears sticking to her face, leaving a salty trail, and new ones, sitting on the corners of her brown eyes, threatening to come out at any moment.

Her blue hair was a mess on her head, he hand band was next to her on the ground and she looked young. Like a child who lost their parent in a crowd of people and didn't know what to do, or who to ask for help.

He didn't know what to do, in fact he was frightened, but he walked up to her and sat down beside her, being careful to move her headband on to the knees that were pressed against her chest.

She didn't speak, neither did he; they just stared at each other. Her chocolate eyes had a mixture of fear and sadness and he tried to make up for his lack of words by pushing a comforting gaze into his.

She spoke up finally.

"I-I'm sorry, I-I didn't," she stopped and took a deep breath. "I'm sorry"

He weighed the words in his head, and clenched his jaw.

"Shut up" he said and she cringed backwards, he felt guilty but he kept going, softening his voice as much as possible, which wasn't much.

"Don't apologize shrimp, you got emotions, right? Yer human, so tell me caused em'."

Levy's small frame slumped in exhaustion and she shook her head

"I'm okay"

"Don't lie."

"I'm not!"

"Levy."

Levy's head snapped back to meet his gaze and he figured she was shocked at hearing her own name from his mouth. Usually he would for "shrimp" or "shorty" but tonight she was Levy.

Gajeel just stared at her, as if he was trying to pull the answers out of her.

He felt himself growing frustrated at the fact that she wouldn't speak to him. That she wouldn't open up to him and he felt liking throwing a tantrum.

He knew it was immature but he wanted to know, he wanted to know why she was crying all these nights, why she was dealing with it alone, and he wanted to know _now._

"I don't want to hurt you," she began suddenly, causing his growing frustration to blow away, before he could ask what she meant she spoke again.

"Without you I have know idea what…. what I would do or where I would be. When Fairy Tail disbanded everyone was gone. Jet and Droy where my childhood friends, we grew up together, I love them, I love them so so much." Tears began down her face again and Gajeel resisted the urge to wipe them.

"They left and I couldn't go with them, they love me I know but during those seven years we were gone they grew up, they're different, they have different goals then me and if I went…" She shuddered, trying to maintain a strong voice and failing.

"If I went and I was with them alone with no one else from the guild I would feel so out of place. To feel out of place with your best friends is so much lonelier than just being alone but I miss them so much and I don't even know where they are anymore."

"Lucy, Lucy became my best friend, I have _never_ had a girl best friend. I talked to her about everything, I'd stay at her apartment, I'd cry on her shoulder and she'd cry on she's and mine gone now. She's wrapped in finding Natsu and I knew her heart is broken because mine is too. I don't want to tell you this though." She took a deep breath

"I _didn't_ want to tell you this though because you're the only person I have. When I'm with you I'm happy, when I'm with you the guild is still together and everyone's happy because you're my family and if I tell you I'm crying because I miss everyone I'm scared you'll think 'why aren't I enough?'"

"You're so important to me though and when I'm with you it's perfect but when I'm alone with my thoughts I just miss everyone Gajeel, I miss them all so much, it was so loud all the time and now…now it's so quiet. Silence is _so_ much heavier on me now that it's so common and it hurts." She threw her delicate hands over her face as her body rocked with sobs

"I…. I…."

Gajeel didn't know what to say but he moved. He grabbed one arm gently and pulled her into his chest, and for a moment she was still, and then she began to shake with sobs, wetting his white uniform. He didn't care about it, in that moment he only cared about her.

"I…love you Gajeel," she whispered in between sobs. He didn't speak, he grunted in agreement, and rubbed her blue hair. The moonlight shone on them and time moved them forward. Together and for the first time in awhile they weren't lonely.

The next morning Gajeel woke up to Levy changing in his bedroom. He remembered he let her sleep in his bed with him that night and he groaned.

"Levy, quiet _down_ "

Levy was finishing buttoning the top button of her white jacket; she rolled her eyes at him.

"Get _up_ Gajeel, come on! We don't have all day!"

"Why so excited?" he grumbled rubbing sleep from his eyes as he turned to her.

Her face was vibrant, her eyes had a sparkle it hadn't in awhile, and that Gajeel hadn't even noticed had gone missing until that moment when it was so obviously there.

"We have to get to work Gajeel! Fairy Tail could get back together _any_ day _any_ minute, so get up!" she picked up his coat from the ground and threw it at him, he gave a slight chuckle.

Shorty's back.


End file.
